Category

Astro-Energetics & Power Portals

Update 9-20-16 and 1-15-18: I wrote this original post in early January 2016, yet it's drawn recent attention thanks to reblogs from my kindred spirit and friend Leeby Geeby @ Shamagaia and a few others (thank you!). Uncanny timing. As... Continue Reading →

As we near the gateway to these year-end Holy Days, I’m wishing you a magical and wondrous Solstice, Christmas, and holy days passage, however you celebrate them.

Remember, too: We’ve got a Christmas Day Full Moon adding both illumination and energetic-psychic voltage, so may we all go gently, easily tend (and manage to keep) our center, and be filled with the greater joy and blessing of this time of the year.

And just in case you need some ‘on the fly’restoration and handy tips for keeping your center amidst the whirl and swirl?

“We all start out knowing magic. We are born with whirlwinds, forest fires, and comets inside us. We are born able to sing to birds and read the clouds and see our destiny in grains of sand.

But then we get the magic educated right out of our souls. We get it churched out, spanked out, washed out, and combed out. We get put on the straight and narrow path and told to be responsible. Told to act our age. Told to grow up, for God’s sake.

And you know why we were told that? Because the people doing the telling were afraid of our wildness and youth, and because the magic we knew made them ashamed and sad of what they’d allowed to wither in themselves.”

[11-6-17 Update: This is fresh once more, as Saturn in Sagittarius transits to its original retrograde degree and conjuncts the Galactic Center midpoint for the third and last time, and completes another Trine with Uranus in Aries. Some potent fiery... Continue Reading →

Archer at the opening ceremonies of the Barcelona Olympic Games — an exquisite and elegant moment!

It’s a fine time to re-feature this rather dry-witted, Saturnian insight from Jung on Separating from the Herd.

It’s nicely attuned to this Friday Sagittarius New Moon and new lunar cycle (neatly trined Uranus in Aries, igniting those rebel-sparked ‘fiery arrows’ of stirred-and-centered vision … are you noticing them as they arise?), and for stirring the vision-cauldron for the months and year ahead.

For a few more themes aligned to the current archetype-energies, vision-quest impulses, and possibilities stirring around and within us, check out the recent post and the insightful and ‘co-lucid’ comments, Rebels and Mystic Sells (and related articles that pop up in the links).

The Trickster and rebel-system-agitator (Uranus-Prometheus) is afoot, but so is the Master Teacher (Saturn in Sagittarius).

Aquarians will recognize the weird, unlikely collaboration of this duo, as Uranus/Prometheus and Saturn are the co-rulers of Aquarius. But at the early cusp of the Aquarian Age, we may all be feeling such stirrings and the agitation of creative friction.

Together, Uranus and Saturn are now holding the torch to illuminate and spark the fiery arrows of the vision questwe’ll undertake in the coming months and year, and to transmute … that’d be reduce to ash … the energy of the calcified beliefs or ‘cultural norms’ that are past their expiry date and have gone sour, rancid, or downright toxic.

In ‘The Path’, by Nicholas Roerich (1874-1947), the artist depicted his own arduous journey through the Himalayas, and also symbolized the ‘Narrow Path’ taken by true spiritual journeyers.

“The words “many are called, but few are chosen” are singularly appropriate here, for the development of personality from the germ-state to full consciousness is at once a charisma and a curse, because its first fruit is the conscious and unavoidable segregation of the single individual from the undifferentiated and unconscious herd.” ~ Carl Jung, The Development of Personality

This is what, in the Hero and Heroine’s Journey, is known as answering the call, which takes the journeyer or heroine, “out of the society that would have protected them, and into the dark forest, into the world of fire, of original experience,” as Joseph Campbell mused.

It’s a powerful notion, and if you’ve answered the call and left the interpreted path

'Tis the Season of Lights ... or we're on the cusp of it, anyway. It beckons. Though not without its challenges, it's a potentially delicious time and Season-Spirit of the year ... lights sparking our own Divine Spark, and various... Continue Reading →

Music, inspiration, vision, and dream -- and other domains of The Muses -- are very much in sync with the Neptune archetype. The discipline to put those inspirations into action syncs with Saturn. So it's fitting to share a bit... Continue Reading →

Uh-yup, it's a doozy of a week, a dilly of a pickle, and the bees knees of energetic swirling dervishes ... and likely a few Tantrum Yogis and Hissy Fit Artists, too, doin' their thing. Super sweet, but also typical... Continue Reading →

New Moon, New Stories ... or the possibility seeds for just that, any time we're in need of the good remedy of rekindled vision. Our dominant stories can either grind us down and suck the lifeforce right out of us,... Continue Reading →

Nowadays, with so much wisdom forgotten, many people think of Samhain or the cross-quarters as evidence of pagan ancestors or ‘ancestor worship’.

Or, among those who self-describe as more learned or intellectual, such seasonal festivals might be seen as holdovers from more ‘primitive’ or ‘superstitious’ times.

That’s all so much inaccurate thinky-thinky blah-blah that, caught up in the fog of self-righteousness, misses the point entirely.

Starting October 31st on the calendar, and/or when the Sun reaches mid-Scorpio (15 degrees) in the Northern Hemisphere’s Autumn Season, we note the Samhain, or All Hallow’s, All Souls, or All Saints festival. The ‘Halloween’ of modern times.

This year, 2015, the solar or astrological cross-quarter midpoint occurs over November 7th or 8th, depending on where in the world you are (in New York, it’s just about ‘exact’ at 1:00 p.m. on November 7th).

It’s the perfect time for checking in with the deepest stirrings of heart-and-soul … a Season of Vision-Stirring, Vision-Seed Planting, and Vision-Tending.

I’ve got a Vision-Stirring feature-page on the Sophia’s Children work-table, but for right now, here’s some Vision-Season inspiration.

It’s prime visioning time.

Even the current astro-mythic and Seasonal energies support Vision-Tending:

We already know that the uber-transformative and “Are you being true-you?” Uranus is in Aries and Pluto in the “bring Wisdom to Earth” landscape of Capricorn, Neptune and Chiron travels through heartful, soulful, Divine-connected Pisces, and Saturn the master-magi-teacher is fresh into the sign of the Archer asking us this question:

Just what fiery arrows are we aiming, and at just what destinations … and in service to what (or whom)?

Venus has joined vision-expanding Jupiter and energizing Mars in fire-tending Virgo, before she moves onward, like Inanna or…

‘Tis the season, given the ‘thin time‘ of All Souls and Samhain days coming up at the end of the month and early November — and the general Transformation Times Zap Zone energies we continue to live in and dance with.

Here’s an updated Resources for Empaths and Sensitives Series musing, along with the link to the garden-bouquet of posts for Sensing-Empaths and other energy sensitives, and transformation-catalyst kindred spirits who are feelin’ it just about now.

Ahhh, to be an actual, ‘just wired that way’ Empath — One who is naturally made to be more sensitive to the energy currents (subtle and not-so-subtle), including the thoughts and emotions wafting and swirling around us at any given moment.

To be a Sensing-Empath, oran Empathic-Sensitive as some might say, is to have a set of unique innate gifts or medicines for our times.

In this case, Empathic Sensitivity is an inherent or natural trait — the way we’re made — not a learned-behavior.

But the inherent capacity to actual sense and feel subtle and ‘unseen’ energies? That’s innate, not taught.

I’m not sure — in fact, I don’t actually think — that actual empathy can be taught, though certain awareness or ‘having a clue’ might be increased, and skillful communication and interpersonal behaviors taught (or mimicked).

In yesterday's "Current Special Offerings" musing, I referred to the latest swirl of 'buzz' related to the Energies of Now for the coming weeks. Yes, it's got it all, complete with the usual servings of catastrophobia and missives from the... Continue Reading →

That’s what my Qigong Grandmaster called healthy yang or the Sacred Masculine, which is very much in alignment and partnership with and honoring of the healthy yin or Sacred Feminine.

Power with versus the toxic old Dominator Culture norm of power over.

That’s what I’m talking about (whatever the spiritual tradition from which you gain Wisdom and inspiration) — and it’s the energetic we’ll have plenty of cosmic and Earth help with as we move forward, starting now. Stay tuned …

Thanks, Bill! This video arrived so very synchronously, just seconds after I hung up the phone from a “Healing Skills Reclamation” Session discussing the spiritual path of the Warrior. I had just described this very dynamic of becoming so strong that you bypass the “need” for violence.

This video gives a passionate description of the differences between a Warrior and a soldier, as well as why our world needs a return of the Warrior. Lately, I’ve felt led to read both “The Upanishads” and “The Poetic Edda,” and both traditions share an appreciation for the role of true Warriors. It’s not about bashing heads or bombing civilians into oblivion. Reclaiming the values, courage and skills of the Warrior has deep implications for spiritual development, human sovereignty and, indeed, the fate of our world. This is 22 minutes well worth the listen:

It's fun to play with the new moon, particularly today's new moon in Leo, an archetype that includes 'playfulness' as one of its qualities, among others that are truly empowering. Read on ... There's a powerful alchemy of which today's... Continue Reading →

"If you bring forth what is within you, what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is within you, what you do not bring forth will destroy you." ~ Gospel of Thomas, Saying 70... Continue Reading →

Oh yeah, it's been a doozy of a few days. Or week. Or more. Peep-reports from the field, which sync with my own experiences and/or observations of those around me, suggest a Zap-Zone with a very stirred up, mucky shared... Continue Reading →

Here’s another lovely and timely musing from Anne Whitaker from her Writing From the 12th House blog, with a mention of another kindred spirit sister, Molly Hall. Double the insight and good!

And it’s perfect for this Dark Moon, or Moondark, time that we’re in (and since it comes each month, and in any other Deep Yin time (meditation, night, etc.), it’s always a good time for this insight).

With the new moon arriving tonight (Eastern Time, and then through the crescent moon in a few days), it’s a good time to rejuvenate, restore, and re-collect, and listen deeply for your Heart’s true yearnings that can inform the vision-seeds for this lunar cycle.

I was born in the very last hours of Moondark…and find that it’s best to note Moondark periods in my new diary each year. At these times, each month, I find that I need even more time than usual (having several 12th House planets anyway) to retreat, be in silence, drift, and dream…let my mind wander.

This is what I am able to do today, on the last day of Moondark. I’d be interested in others’ experiences of this phenomenon – and its impact especially at those times which happen to us all, when LIFE requires us to engage, to be busy, to stay focused. What are you doing today as you wait for the Cancer New Moon tomorrow?

Having googled “Writing about Moondark”, I found this fine article, a compilation of others’ writings by astrologer Molly Hall. (see full attribution at the end.) It is well written and…

My friend Molly Hall at the Wild Bee Farmlet has shared another insightful and heartful perspective on the energies, questions, and opportunities of now. She writes of a "disturbance in the psycho-sphere," and asks, "Do you believe everything you see... Continue Reading →

“I took the other road, all right, but only because it was the easy road for me, the way I wanted to go. If I’ve encountered some unnecessary resistance that’s because most of the traffic is going the other way.”... Continue Reading →

I smiled when I saw that the insightful women of Mooncircles had, at some point in the past, referred to this full moon as 'Jinn full moon'. 'Jinn full moon' is particularly fitting given the wild, chaotic surges of elements... Continue Reading →

Are you tuning in at this Medusa-flavored new moon to receive Wisdom from the depths? For those with a two-second attention span, at this new moon you're invited to call Wisdom and heartfulness 'down to Earth' to illuminate and guide... Continue Reading →

Odyssey noun od·ys·sey \ˈä-də-sē\ : a long journey full of adventures : a series of experiences that give knowledge or understanding to someone 1: a long wandering or voyage usually marked by many changes of fortune 2: an intellectual or... Continue Reading →

There are some cycles, passages, or even life-purposes that fly (or flow) in direct opposition to the more Saturnine, Capricornian, structured, hierarchical, "Puritan work ethic" oriented norm that is celebrated in much of Western culture, and certainly in the U.S.... Continue Reading →

Do you feel your Virgoan angels (or demons) being stirred right about now? How can you tell? When Virgo facets and essences are activated -- as they might be during a Virgo Moon time or when we have other Virgo-activating... Continue Reading →

New Moon. Black Moon. Black Madonna. Here's the story. When I saw the 'black moon' reference for the 18 February Aquarius New Moon at Earthsky.org, the Black Madonna arose in my awareness. She's been surfacing for me again anyway in... Continue Reading →

I love this post, and the music that Boštjan shares! It's really in sync with the current Energies of Now: We're in the dark moon just before the upcoming Aquarian new moon (the 2nd in the sign). The twin-set of... Continue Reading →

Imbolc-Candlemas is celebrated during the first few days of February, and the exact-point occurs when the Sun is at 15 degrees of Aquarius — February 3rd this year (check your own time zone for any variations).

Imbolc-Candlemas also initiates whatthe late mythic astrologer Steve Nelson called the Candlemas Hora … a holy time. He said:

“This Mid-Aquarius “power gate” begins the Candlemas Hora, a 15-day period from Feb 3 to 18 when the nature of the New Year becomes illuminated and the vital energies of Nature stir to life.”

Lady of Częstochowa, another well-known Black Madonna located at the Jasna Góra Monastery in Częstochowa, Poland. Read the ‘Rilke & the Black Madonna’ post to learn more of her significance.

Read on to stir your Divine Spark —and the Wise Guide and Keeper of the Flame that you may be, in your unique way and presence — in sync with the meaning of this season.

If you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, you’ll be at the midpoint of Summer Solstice and Autumn Equinox, which is Lughnasadh. You can read about that here.

Even if you’re in Lughnasadh time, if you’ve got interests in the deep Feminine,the Black Madonna, and the associated gifts of deeper and awakening Wisdom, you’ll enjoy the Imbolc-Candlemas post for those goodies.

For additional clues and insights on your role for these times,have a look at the current featured offerings or send me an email (info ‘at’ sophias-children ‘dot’ com).

Imbolc or Fèill Bhrìghdewere some of the names given to this time of year by the Gaelic-Celtic ancestors, as they marked the midpoint between the Winter Solstice and Spring Equinox, and later is was called Candlemas or Fèill Brìghde.

Other cultures and traditions celebrated and honored the turning of the Seasonal wheel by other names.

I feel a special affinity for this time of year, since I was born at Imbolc-Candlemas, with Sirius and Orion visible in the Winter night sky.

For some of our ancestors, that reminder of coming Spring (and fading Winter) was a pretty big deal, in a region where it got plenty cold, and a time when there wasn’t the ease of electricity, central heating, a gas stove and electric fridge, or…

Light in the Crypt of St. Wystan Church, Repton, U.K. [Photo via TripAdvisor]

“You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment, and to embrace them with courage, faith and hope.”

~ Thomas Merton, American writer, mystic, and Trappist monk

For this Freyja Day musing, here’s a generous helping of very timely wisdom from a fellow Aquarian and sojourner on the Way, Thomas Merton.

Follow the links below, to Br. Merton’s insight on the greatest need of our time, and see what inspires and resonates with you.

“The greatest need of our time is to clean out the enormous mass of mental and emotional rubbish that clutters our minds and makes of all political and social life a mass illness.

Without this housecleaning, we cannot begin to see. Unless we see, we cannot think.”

~ Thomas Merton, American writer, mystic, and monk, in Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander

On the spiritual path (whatever you might call it), we often move through some pretty challenging passages that can serve to “polish the mirrors of our hearts” or “illuminate the eyes and ears of our hearts,” as well as sand away some of the mental and emotional rubbish, as the Aquarian monk, Br. Merton wrote.

Since Thomas Merton’s particular vibe of wise counsel is pretty in sync with these particular times, I’ve included several other wisdom-gems from him in a few previous Sophia’s Children…

A good many people feel off-center, stretched-too-thin, stressed out, and 'pulled in all directions' these days, for a variety of reasons. I've written before of this sense of feeling, in Bilbo Baggins' words, "Like too little butter spread over too... Continue Reading →

Some traditions refer to the Divine Spark or Inner Light within us, which is hidden from us, then found, cultivated, and shared forth as 'medicine' or remedy for the world in these times. This awareness was part of the deeper,... Continue Reading →

"And then the sailors say, 'The halcyon days are here. Let us be glad. There is nothing to fear'." ~ Emma Firth, Stories of Old Greece, 1895 My friend Molly Hall mentioned Halcyon Days in a message this morning, and... Continue Reading →